TWD 10x20 "Splinter" episode discussion... **SPOILERS**

[MinionZombie]

Please keep all talk of episode 10x20 "Splinter" specifically inside this thread. If you have a theory for a following episode, please use the "spoiler tags" (visit the HPOTD FAQ to find out how to use them if you don't already know). Similarly, if you're going to discuss plot points from the comic book, please use "spoiler tags" - not everyone is up-to-date on them, and some people don't read them at all. Enjoy! Directed by: Laura Belsey Written by: Julia Ruchman & Vivian Tse

[MinionZombie]

It was a bit slow to get going, and felt too confined, but it got going in the second half with a good chance to get to know Princess that little bit better. Occasionally it wobbled a bit too close to "ooh, mah struggle" Twitter territory getting into the personal journey/mental health stuff, but for the most part it worked. I just think those things work better, in a show like this, if they're drawn a bit more subtle and according to the world in-show. Some of the blunt ways folks talk today, inspired by Twitter, simply wouldn't exist in the world of TWD as their zombie apocalypse basically predates the popularity of Twitter and all that came with it. These dudes in white combat suits don't exactly do public relations very well, do they? Nor camouflage.

[Moon Knight]

I like Princess. Paola Lázaro really owns that part. She’s perfect. The character is already better than what they did in the comic.

[MinionZombie]

I like Princess. Paola Lázaro really owns that part. She’s perfect. The character is already better than what they did in the comic. Agreed. Princess was a bit one-note in the comics, from what I recall. Lázaro and the writers are doing a cracking job of fleshing her out. Lázaro in particular, as she has to actually perform this character with all her curious ways and overall vibe. She does breeze in like this sudden gust of very different air in the comics - and I loved her introduction in Season 10B (her little walker vignettes of 'daily life' had a real Romero vibe to them, which I really enjoyed). This episode in general though, there wasn't enough forward momentum. I think that's a bit of an issue with these six additional episodes. We're somewhat in stasis when it comes to the overall story. Interestingly, the actress who plays Yumiko doesn't live in the USA, so she wasn't able to appear in this episode physically - she was played by a double for those brief shots, and then she provided the vocal recording via the wonders of the world wide web. Still, it shows the problems that Covid causes productions like this. There's a lot of limitations placed upon these episodes because of it. I dearly hope Season 11 doesn't get affected so much. The first episode didn't feel overly affected, but having watched these last four episodes now it does feel more and more that way, unfortunately. There's been good stuff, no doubt (e.g. last week's episode, or the one examining Daryl's relationship with Leah), but the overall story is kinda 'on hold' in these, which is a shame. There wasn't enough meat on the bone here. The meat that was there was good, but there wasn't enough in general. Oddly, according to Talking Dead - this is the first episode of TWD without a zombie kill. The writers didn't even realise in an earlier draft that there weren't any walkers in it at all at one point, so they had to come up with a place to put some. In some ways that's interesting ... but in other ways it's a bit worrying.

[beat_truck]

Oddly, according to Talking Dead - this is the first episode of TWD without a zombie kill. The writers didn't even realise in an earlier draft that there weren't any walkers in it at all at one point, so they had to come up with a place to put some. In some ways that's interesting ... but in other ways it's a bit worrying. I've been recording these last episodes, but haven't bothered to watch them yet. It just hasn't been a high priority. It really sounds like the show has just about completely run out of steam. Hopefully, they do something to make next season and the finale worth remembering, but I have a strong feeling that they won't.

[MinionZombie]

Hopefully, they do something to make next season and the finale worth remembering, but I have a strong feeling that they won't. I don't think they'd just let the show limp to a lame ending, not at all. Nobody wants to be responsible for going out with a fart instead of a bang. They've seen how other shows have been lambasted for dodgy endings that they never live down (e.g. Dexter). These six episodes take some material from Season 11, but they'll only be taking smaller parts (possibly stretching one episode's B plot to full episode length?), and these are episodes which were never really intended to happen until late in the game - and with all the Covid bullshit going on they've not been made under the same kind of conditions that the show is usually produced under ... so it's not really fair to judge Season 11's potential on these 'tacked on' six episodes. In fact, with a finite number of episodes, Season 11 has a bit more going for it - focus. They have to wrap the main TWD story up inside however many episodes remaining (about 22 over two years IIRC?)

[beat_truck]

IMO, the show hasn't been that great for years now, when it didn't have the Covid BS to blame. Some of it has actually been downright terrible. I also don't think focus has been one of the show's strong points since the early seasons, which were excellent compared to the crap we've had in the last years. If they actually do something good with Season 11 and the finale, it will be a pleasant surprise. I ain't holding my breath, though.

[Moon Knight]

Seasons 9 and 10 were far superior overall compared to seasons 7 and 8. Angela Kang pretty much saved the show from Gimple. I wasn’t expecting much from these current character pieces cause that’s all they are, “bonus episodes” filmed during peak Covid. Season 11 has far less restrictions going in. With that said, I hope they change a lot from the comic story cause it’s just not very good.

[MinionZombie]

Seasons 9 and 10 were far superior overall compared to seasons 7 and 8. Angela Kang pretty much saved the show from Gimple. I wasn’t expecting much from these current character pieces cause that’s all they are, “bonus episodes” filmed during peak Covid. Season 11 has far less restrictions going in. With that said, I hope they change a lot from the comic story cause it’s just not very good. There's a lot to work with from the comics story with what's to come, but yeah, there's a lot they can either change or build upon/tweak to make improvements - which we have seen routinely on the TV show adaptation. Carol was a short-lived pain in the arse in the comics, but on the TV show she's one of the longest running and best characters. Seasons 7 and 8 both have their high points. Both seasons contain episodes that are all-time great episodes, but they also represented the ultimately misguided story structure that Gimple was so obsessed with - too much happening in such a short period of in-show time, which grew very frustrating for some viewers. Even with Season 8 they kind of missed part of some of what they stumbled over with the previous season. They shoved in a lot more gunfights and action, but still the time frame in-show was so limited and, well, the whole Carl debacle. However, yes, and particularly having recently re-watched Season 9, Kang's first season as showrunner was excellent and - incredibly - managed to weather the storm of writing out Rick. How on earth they'll suitably justify his years-long absense in-show, I don't know, but Kang has breathed fresh air into the show. It's not all been smooth, and Season 10 (the main 'original length' season) was patchier - especially compared to Season 9 - but she definitely solved numerous problems that Gimple had either introduced or not cared/noticed to fix himself.

[beat_truck]

Gimple sure tried his best to run the show into the ground. There were some good moments mixed in, but IMO, Season 6, 7, and especially Season 8 were the low points for the show. When he started with the artsy-fartsy bullshit like the B&W flashbacks, the constant zooming in on people's eyes, etc I was like come on man! The stupidity at the beginning of 8 almost made me tune out. Killing Carl off and then Rick leaving basically ruined the show for me even more. Kang taking over for Season 9 was definitely an improvement in certain ways. but the show still just wasn't like it used to be. Season 10 was just "meh" over all. And just like with the Saviors, after all the the building up, the way the Whisperers were defeated was pretty anticlimactic. I also think that even in a fictional zombie apocalypse, the whole Whisperers story line was completely retarded. Just because it was in the comics doesn't mean they had to use the material on the show.